


Crawl

by Sarina_Hawke_Theirin



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Difficult Decisions, F/M, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-09
Updated: 2016-03-09
Packaged: 2018-05-25 17:19:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6204046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarina_Hawke_Theirin/pseuds/Sarina_Hawke_Theirin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shepard is forced to make the choice that will change his life and the universe forever. One shot based on the Breaking Benjamin song, "Crawl".</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crawl

**Author's Note:**

> **Show me where it hurts**   
>  **And I will make it worse**   
>  **Are you holding on? Keep holding on**   
>  **Dilated eyes shine for one last time**   
>  **Are you holding on? Keep holding on**
> 
> **You're not like me**   
>  **Your faceless lies**   
>  **Your weak dead heart**   
>  **Your black dead eyes**
> 
> **I'll break you in,**   
>  **And let this die**   
>  **Your hope is gone**   
>  **And so is mine**
> 
> _~Breaking Benjamin_

The choices were laid out in front of him in the form of three brilliant and different colored beams of light. According to the Catalyst, Shepard could either control the Reapers by melding his mind with one, let the machine absorb his essence and synthesize every organic being into a hybrid machine or he could destroy the machine and the Reapers along with it, ending the fifty thousand year cycle of harvest once and for all.

The Commander folded his arms across his chest and stared at each pillar of light in turn, gauging his best option. Apparently, he would die no matter what choice he made, but as always, it wasn't about him or what he wanted. It was about preserving life, saving the ones he loved, the ones he fought alongside, and the innocents who were depending on him.

He watched the blue beam for several minutes before an image of the Illusive Man crossed his mind. The Cerberus leader thought that he could control the Reapers because they told him he could. He thought of Saren and Benezia and then Dr. Kenson and her team on the Project Base along with all of the other indoctrinated people he had met over the past few years. All of them had one thing in common, they were brainwashed to believe whatever the Reapers wanted them to. Shepard shook his head. He had seen the results of the lies too many times and he refused to fall into that same trap.

His eyes turned to the green colored beam. If he took that route, his organic material would be absorbed and every being in the galaxy would become half synthetic. The Catalyst had called it a perfect solution, which made Shepard wary of it. He closed his eyes and saw his best friend, Garrus turned into one of those Marauders and then his friend Liara reduced to a Banshee. The Catalyst told Shepard that he was the first one to ever make it that far, the first one to be given the choice. Maybe this was what the Reapers were hoping for all along, to synthesize all organics so they could rule them completely. No, synthesis wasn't an option.

Finally, the Commander looked at the red beam. If he chose that path, it would lead to the destruction of not only the Reapers, but also every synthetic being in the galaxy. He thought of EDI and Legion and how they fought at his side. Then there was Tali. Since the Geth had agreed to share the Quarian home world, the machines had made medical advances that would have taken years for Tali's people to duplicate. He closed his eyes once again and the image of his lover standing on a cliff looking out over an ocean came to mind. She was no longer wearing her enviro-suit, but free to walk out in the sun without a worrying that the exposure might kill her. Destroying the Reapers would almost ensure that it would be an experience she would never have.

Shepard sighed heavily. No matter what choice he made, someone was going to lose. No matter what he did, he would be a monster, little better than those he had been fighting. The ghostly image of the boy who was the voice of the Reapers stared at him with cold black eyes.

"You must make a choice"

Shepard nodded as his shoulders slumped. He turned to the right and began hobbling toward the red beam. He had no delusions. He knew what needed to be done. The Reapers were too dangerous, too unpredictable. They had to be destroyed. He pulled his pistol from its holster and began emptying it into the pillar as his pace quickened. He wouldn't be alive to know the consequences of his actions, but neither would those damned machines. It had to end and he was going to be the one to end it. Images of those he lost along the way filled his mind. He wouldn't allow their lives to be lost in vain. Thane, Mordin, Kaidan...they all fought to get him there. They fought to destroy the Reapers.

As he took his final shot, Shepard saw Tali's face once again and she smiled at him, telling him that he made the right decision. Just before the red beam enveloped him in a massive explosion, Commander Shepard threw his head back, held his arms out at his sides and whispered, "I love you Tali. Keelah se'lei."

 


End file.
